About Us

Memorial Presbyterian Day School is a local St. Augustine tradition, having served families in the St Augustine area for more than fifty years. Established in 1955, PDS is an outreach ministry of Memorial Presbyterian Church that represents a diverse faith community that has served St. Augustine children and families for three generations. Our St. Augustine preschool is located in the heart of historic, downtown St. Augustine on the Memorial Presbyterian Church campus, which was recently named by CNN as one of the "8 Religious Wonders to See in the U.S.". Children and teachers enjoy the beautiful facilities and historic setting of the school.

Our goal at Presbyterian Day School is to provide an atmosphere in which students not only learn academically, but also grow socially, emotionally, physically, and spiritually through receiving loving preparation to help them succeed in kindergarten and beyond. Recognizing that each child is an individual, our knowledgeable and experienced teaching staff fosters the intellectual curiosity, self-confidence, and faith of each child.

PDS excels in providing outstanding early childhood education. We are known for our love of children and our high standard of educational excellence. At Memorial Presbyterian Day School, we believe in giving children the opportunity to grow, explore, and learn at their own pace. We realize that each child is unique and we tailor our program to complement each child's individual needs. At PDS, we have high curriculum standards and flexible hours to further enrich your child's day. We have small classroom sizes with low student teacher ratios so that all children receive the attention they need.

We are endorsed as an Eco-Healthy Child Care program. This endorsement from the Children's Environmental Health Network verifies that we are committed to provide a healthy, safe, and green child care setting for the children and families that we serve.

School Hours and Options

We have flexible scheduling so you can mix and match options to go along with your child's core class in order to best meet the needs your family.

This program runs from 12:00-2:00. Children eat lunch after the regular noon dismissal and then have some outside time followed by an enrichment activity. Your child can attend enrichments 2 days, 3 days, or 5 days (it doesn't have to be every day, even if your child attends 5 days of school a week). Some children are picked up at 2:00 when enrichments are over, while others stay for Extended Day and are picked up by 4:30.

Highly Qualified Teaching Faculty: All of our teachers are certified, with the majority having a B.A. or M.A. in Early Childhood or Elementary Education

Our teaching turn-over is extremely low with most teachers staying several years. In each classroom, the senior teacher in the room has between 8 and 21 years here at PDS!

WHAT MAKES US SPECIAL?

There are a lot of things that separate us from the pack! Here are a few things that our families have said about us that they particularly like.

We are a family oriented school, NOT an institution.

Our teachers are very qualified and stay with us a long time; all of us really want to get to know you and your children to help make your years at PDS the best they can be!

Christian values are interwoven throughout our day, and we have regular Chapel Time.

We have small classes with low student-teacher ratios, and we have two teachers in each room.

We love and appreciate the outdoors! We believe it is so important for kids to be able to get outside, and we provide lots of opportunities for them to run, climb, ride bikes, play in a water table, dig in the sand, garden, and go on walks.

We provide flexible scheduling with lots of fun extra activities such as music, art, and PE.

The most important thing that our families can tell about us is that we truly love children and all love our jobs!

A Note from our Director

At Memorial Presbyterian Day School, we believe in giving children the opportunity to grow, explore, and learn at their own pace. We facilitate the growth of the whole child: intellectual/academic, social, emotional, physical, and spiritual. We realize that each child is unique; we look to complement individual needs and work to reach each child's next step. At PDS, we have high curriculum standards and flexible hours to further enrich your child's day. We have highly qualified, experienced, and loving teachers with small classroom sizes so all children receive the attention they need. I look forward to hearing from you! Request more information today and ask for a tour!